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BMW has unveiled the first widely available all-electric Mini Cooper. Coming in early 2020, the car will start at around $35,000 and travel 235 kilometers (146 miles) per charge. Compared to similarly priced EVs on the road now with more than 200 miles of range, like the Kona Electric or the Tesla Model 3, the Mini’s mileage figure looks paltry. It will only look worse next year as more capable electric cars hit the road, and the Mini gets a more realistic EPA mileage rating. It’s a curious thing to see from a company that was early to electric cars, and it helps explain why BMW’s CEO Harald Krueger resigned last week.
Krueger was BMW’s CEO for four years, coming in not long after the company’s i3 electric crossover SUV hit the market. But in a message to employees on his way out the door last week, he reportedly cited the “enormous changes” happening in the auto industry as a reason for leaving. BMW, it seems, fell behind the curve on Krueger’s watch.
Source: https://www.theverge.com/2019/7/9/20687413/bmw-electric-mini-cooper-specs-release
(Score: 3, Funny) by ledow on Thursday July 11 2019, @12:25PM (1 child)
They probably couldn't figure out a way to make the direction-indicators stop working 10 seconds after you bought the car.
(Score: 2) by DannyB on Thursday July 11 2019, @07:00PM
They also couldn't replicate the mechanical problem causing their vehicles suddenly swerve into the carpool lane and accelerate to a high rate of speed.
This problem also seems to interact with the steering in some way to cause parking difficulties. The driver is lucky if he can get the vehicle parked in only two adjacent parking spots instead of three.
When trying to solve a problem don't ask who suffers from the problem, ask who profits from the problem.
(Score: 4, Interesting) by aim on Thursday July 11 2019, @12:34PM (2 children)
"i3 crossover SUV"? I'd view it rather as a butt-ugly small minivan. As much as I like the i8 hybrid, the i3 is a real failure in the looks department. It's very small for its huge pricetag. On the plus side, going for a mostly-carbon structure was ambitious.
The Mini is also quite small for a huge pricetag... that apparently goes with the "lifestyle" market - another candidate being the Fiat 500. Comparing the current editions - especially with their abominable SUV versions - to the old-style originals is rather... disappointing.
I feel it's going to be a long wait until a reasonably-priced, sensible BEV car gets to the market...
(Score: 2) by epitaxial on Thursday July 11 2019, @12:48PM (1 child)
Strangely enough its Mini drivers that are always trying to race me.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday July 11 2019, @10:26PM
I always find it interesting. In different cities it seems to be different groups of drivers that want to do that. The last city I lived in it seemed to be Chevy trucks. The current one I live in it seems to be Audi's. Another one I lived in it was a lexus every time.
(Score: 3, Interesting) by looorg on Thursday July 11 2019, @12:36PM (2 children)
Did someone ever buy a BMW for the great mileage of fuel (gas or electric) and not as a giant status symbol?
(Score: 3, Interesting) by sgleysti on Thursday July 11 2019, @01:19PM (1 child)
Point. But perhaps the limited mileage hurts the car's capacity to be a status symbol.
(Score: 2) by RS3 on Friday July 12 2019, @02:27PM
No, it shows you're rich enough to not care. It's really only taking you to your private jet.
(Score: 3, Funny) by OrugTor on Thursday July 11 2019, @01:20PM (1 child)
Interesting that they would retain the Cooper brand element. The original Mini Cooper was the result of a partnership between BMC and Cooper with Cooper's contribution being a more powerful engine. I suppose they needed to use the marque in its entirety for name recognition. If they did the car right it should outperform the gas model handily so maybe "Coooper" is appropriate.
Joke from the sixties: two minis collided on the Exeter bypass. None of the seventeen students involved were injured.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday July 11 2019, @01:46PM
> If they did the car right it should outperform the gas model handily so maybe "Coooper" is appropriate.
If you limit the measurement of performance to 0-60mph (or 100kph) times than I agree. If you consider something more comprehensive, like winning the Monte Carlo Rally, then you are far off mark--the time-to-charge would easily cause a battery electric to fail in a competition like this:
https://www.sportscardigest.com/small-car-huge-win-1964-monte-carlo-rallye-profile/ [sportscardigest.com]
(Score: 3, Interesting) by Rupert Pupnick on Thursday July 11 2019, @03:31PM (2 children)
BMW CEO versus Boeing CEO
(Score: 3, Insightful) by DannyB on Thursday July 11 2019, @07:02PM (1 child)
BMW CEO versus Volkswagen CEO ?
Diesel gate?
When trying to solve a problem don't ask who suffers from the problem, ask who profits from the problem.
(Score: 2) by RS3 on Friday July 12 2019, @03:51PM
One got caught, one trying to flee before getting caught?
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday July 11 2019, @06:46PM
bmw "bayerische motoren werk(e)"?
i think they also made some "cyclinders in a circle" engines for airplanes and the first "mass produced" jet engines (entry point at wikipedia "kraft ei", engl. "power-egg").
also they make motorcycles ...
(Score: 3, Interesting) by Phoenix666 on Thursday July 11 2019, @11:07PM (1 child)
it's with mixed feelings that i saw this news. when i was car shopping ten years ago for something parkable in brooklyn, we considered Minis. but when i wrote to Cooper to ask about news i had seen about a planned hybrid version, they actually mocked me. so this fills me with schadenfreude.
but EVs the size of Minis are a good option for cities and suburbs.BMW i3s make decent commuter cars and are fun to drive.
Washington DC delenda est.
(Score: 2) by RS3 on Friday July 12 2019, @03:58PM
A good friend of mine bought a Bolt 2.5 years ago and he _loves_ it. He takes it on long trips, too. I think it gets as much as 260 miles on a charge, but he runs AC a lot, so less for him. He knows where all the charging stations are, stops to eat while charging, or stays overnight (very long trips, company paid). He's had no problems, and finally convinced his wife to give up her Mercedes and buy a Town & Country plug-in hybrid, which has about 60 mile range on batteries, then will run engine if needed. He said they went 6 months on 1 tank of gasoline. Again, they love it.